Certain N-substituted-1H-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-3-benzazepines are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,465,677 to have alpha.sub.2 antagonistic activity which is of benefit in treating abnormal cardiovascular conditions such as hypertension. The leading species described there is the 3-methyl-6-chloro congener. This compound, as noted at column 1 in the Description of Prior Art of the reference patent, had previously been reported to be used as a chemical intermediate.
The N-oxide of 6-chloro-3-methyl-1H-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-3-benzazepine was detected in urine as a metabolite of the parent amine in rats. This work was described in a paper presented on June 1, 1984 at the 32nd Annual Conference on Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics. No utility was described for the N-oxide species in that paper.